"Nephis. Let's go."
The white-haired girl turned back at the voice. Looking at Aldric, she nodded.
Sunny sprung into action.
"Wait! What are you guys doing?"
With Sunny looking at Nephis, she turned to Aldric.
"I remember you asked me why I joined you for the battle in the cathedral and the expedition. Well, it's time for me to cash my check in."
Sunny's face twisted in confusion at the vague answer. Part of him wanted to know more, but he knew Aldric was not one to offer information without being asked.
"Well, can I go with you guys?"
He spoke unabashedly. It was something about those two being alone in an unknown place that irked him to no degree.
Aldric gave it a thought. It was not as if he would lose anything from being watched. Hiding his strength was not a big deal to him at all. He did not gain anything from people underestimating him, and learning of his battle style did not necessarily help a person counter it. After all, how do you counter a battle style based on counters?
Still, having more people than required would affect his plan.
"Nope. Just me and the lady, I'm afraid."
Aldric responded.
The hunter's eyes went to Cassie. The oracle looked confused, as if she did not see this coming at all. It was a weird expression to observe, as if she was happy to not know something.
Sunny wanted to argue, but he was able to read the room.
'Cassie should know something about this. I'll ask her about it when they leave.'
He thought as he reassured himself. While he wanted to know more from Nephis, the weird dynamic he had with Nephis on revealing things to each other once he had left their cohort and dubbed himself a "mercenary" made it difficult to justify a response.
"Don't worry. We'll be back in a few hours, and I'll tell you guys all about it."
With that, it was over.
Aldric and Nephis walked together out of the outer settlement and towards the Dark City.
South.
----------
The walk was quiet. With most of the nightmare creatures of the Dark City being killed, they did not have to worry so much about their safety, but they kept alert at all times.
'It's finally time. A test. To see if I have the strength needed for my ambitions.'
During his stay in the outer settlement, he had asked around what exactly lived south. It was Effie that told him of whose territory laid there.
The stone legion.
Effie explained that while the regular stone creatures were awakened ranked monsters and not the most dangerous thing to exist in the city, the real issue was their leader. This was something that she had learned from her mentor, who had learned it from a member of the first cohort. While there were other nightmare creatures that she named, Aldric knew exactly which one it was that caught the attention of the Tesseract.
He took this information and spent some time trying to locate the exact location of the territory. To scope out the location and the abilities of the commander if he could.
Aldric and Nephis had arrived at the site.
In the south of the city, a massive colosseum stood tall. It was one of the only structures that still remained standing in the Dark City. That did not mean it wasn't affected by the flow of time. Of the original oval-shaped stadium, nearly half had crumbled to the ground. Leaving the arena that the original inhabitants of the city crowded around to be open on its side. Hence, only half the seating stood remaining and encompassed the arena in a crescent shape.
Ironically, while the architecture was similar to colosseums back in the waking world, it seemed the material of choice was different. Obsidian blocks of stone made up the structure. It seemed to be the same material that made up the walls of the city.
They were about 100 metres away from the colosseum. With the boost in vision received as an awakened, they could see a figure standing strangely. Like a marionette with its strings detached, it was uncanny.
"What rank is it exactly?"
Nephis asked.
"Fallen. I don't know about its class, but it should be higher than demon."
Nephis looked at him with a conflicted expression.
"What is the point in doing this? What do you have to gain that you don't have? You know what awaits us after Kai returns."
This was the favour that he asked in return for his help in securing her rule over the castle and fighting against the knight in the cathedral. He did not specify exactly what it was but just that he would need her to heal him after a battle.
While he was part of her group, she saw them as equals. Even more so than Caster, Kai, Effie, and Cassie. The reason was not how close they were in strength but in their resolve and motivations. She did not see him as someone to lead but rather to fight beside.
Sunny was something that she couldn't fully understand.
She often subconsciously drew strength and validation from having someone like Aldric beside her. A person that was not under anyone else's thumb and that paved their own way. While it was annoying to have an unplanned variable that could affect their future plans, she respected his decision. It was his to make after all.
"It was something that I was putting off for a while. A challenge to reaffirm my resolve."
Aldric spoke.
He had spent the journey here calming his mind and preparing for his battle.
Looking at the figure, he noticed the familiar sight. He had seen the same figure in a similar position when he first scouted the arena.
Standing over 3 metres tall, a warrior-like figure was coated in an obsidian-plated armour that reminded Aldric of his own armour. However, this seemed to be almost grafted onto the being. The state of the figure was horrific. Its left arm was torn from its shoulder, dangling from the crushed shoulder plate. In its right hand was a large great sword similar to the one owned by his apostle but with an eerie aura emanating from it. Surrounding the figure was a miasma of black. While he wasn't sure exactly what the properties of the miasma were, he could make a deduction based on the necrosis of its surroundings. The weeds that sprouted in between the cracks of the ground were dead in a radius surrounding him.
He had surveyed the fallen creature for a whole day. It was a lucky sight to see the figure fight a nightmare creature that tried to invade its territory. Its battle style was scary. A solid foundation in swordsmanship that led to a beastly finish. Crazy turns and twists that made predicting its movements multitudes more difficult.
He looked towards Nephis, who had equipped her Dawn Shard. Empowering his memories and especially his awakened blade.
"It's time. See you after I win."
Aldric spoke confidently. Though between the two of them, one of them was uncertain about what he said.
He walked towards the arena.
Inhale.
Exhale.
**********
Thank you for reading.
The duel is upon us. Who is this figure?
To Angel_of_Damnation, I will consider it. You make a fair point. Don't worry about it.
That is all for this chapter. Till next time.